What is the most thought provoking sci fi book?

Discussion in 'SciFi & Fantasy' started by dixonmassey, Aug 7, 2004.

  1. dixonmassey Valued Senior Member

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    What is the most thought provoking sci fi books you've stumbled over?
     
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  3. OverTheStars Registered Senior Member

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    Anything by Zechariah Stitchin.
     
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  5. Rappaccini Redoubtable Registered Senior Member

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    Starship Troopers, by R. A. Heinlein
     
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  7. cosmictraveler Be kind to yourself always. Valued Senior Member

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    Foundation By Issac Asimov
     
  8. Alpha «Visitor» Registered Senior Member

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    I find a lot of short stories are thought provoking. Can't think of the titles of any in particular, even though the stories themselves stand out in my mind.
    Actually, the matrix comics are often thought provoking.
     
  9. robtex Registered Senior Member

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    tough call. The Jesus incident by Frank Herbert. The book has a machine that creates an artificial savior and many of the humans and humanoids in the book follow it. I read it a really long time ago so I can't recall too much about it.

    Macroscope by piers anthony. The book is about a telescope that can see further than any before it and the journey the scientist take with its direction. It brings up a number of questions about human morality and mankinds existance within the universe.

    soul catcher by Frank Herbert. book has a unique presepective on life and why i didn't buy into it i did realize that prespectives and intrepreations of the soul could be radiaclly different than mine own.

    It is late at night but maybe tomarrow I can think of some more. I dont' read much sci fi actually but those three immediatly stick out.
     
  10. eddymrsci Beware of the dark side Registered Senior Member

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    I, Robot by Assimov
     
  11. spuriousmonkey Banned Banned

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    The moon is a harsh mistress, robert heinlein.
     
  12. Oxygen One Hissy Kitty Registered Senior Member

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    "The Gernsback Continuum" by William Gibson (short story in "Burning Chrome"). It was a hallucination of what the future (in this case the '80's) was supposed to be according to the designs of the dreamers of the '30's, a contrast of the "Metropolis" look of Fritz Lang that was predicted and the stark reality that had actually come about.
     
  13. kula (Memes enclosed) within Registered Senior Member

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    Otherland by Tad Williams

    kula
     
  14. eM0912 Infectious Microbe Registered Senior Member

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    virus clans

    i don't know who wrote the book, but i bought it at this little rinky dink store. it's an awesome book. the world is filled with viruses, more microbes than you could possibly imagine and this book, gives a thought that the viruses have motives in killing people. it makes you think, "are viruses living things" "can they think?" "do they feel?" great book, what if viruses could communicate, form clans, and do something for the greater good of their own species...are they even a species? it's an awesome book.
     
  15. rGEMINI Fallen Entity Registered Senior Member

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    I would have to agree on this. It's nothing like the crappy moive, but a book is never like a moive so...
     
  16. invert_nexus Ze do caixao Valued Senior Member

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    Dune by Frank Herbert. The Jesus Incident series was good too, but already mentioned.

    There is a book that I have called the Darkling Wind by Somtow Sucharitkul. It was part of a series. The last book in the series. It was very thoughtful I thought. Dealt with all kinds of issues. Too many to even start discussing here. I wish I could find some of the earlier books. Very rare book.
     
  17. mickeyboy Powerslave rocks Registered Senior Member

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    I have read many Sci-Fi novels by many great writers, but by far my favourite and the most thought provoking is the Split Infinity trilogy by Piers Anthony.
    This man is a genius, if you have never read his stuff seek some out NOW.
    The plot is to involved to go into, and the trilogy ends up being seven books long(?) but it is brilliant, in it he has unicorns marrying robots-there offspring are called unibots (why wouldn't they be)

    anyway sorry for over enthusing thats my nomination

    I cant belive i made such a stupid ass mistake Piers Morgan was the editor of a news paper that fucked up during the gulf war
    Michael
     
    Last edited: Aug 17, 2004
  18. Disco-neck Ted Registered Senior Member

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    Piers Anthony wrote the Split Infinitive series, and while 'Anthony' is only a middle name, his real last name is not Morgan.

    Macroscope was better, but only by a million % or so. Just my opinion.

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    The Stars My Destination by Alfred Bester was really good. Probably left out a few logical developments in a society that can "jaunt" (teleport) but he did a really good job with it. A great read.

    Thought provoking... hmmm. Some R. A. Lafferty stuff is pretty out there and imaginative, but have to admit it's not my favorite reading material. Good stuff, but it doesn't sing to me.

    Really, my imagination goes strolling off most often when reading some of Lord Dunsany's stuff. More fantasy than science fiction though. He conjures interesting images very well.
     
  19. eburacum45 Valued Senior Member

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    One particularly thought provoking book to me was 'The Forge of God', by Greg Bear;
    the aliens come to Earth, pretend to be our friends, then destroy the World; this unusual strategy has developed as a way of eliminating competition in the Galaxy.

    Another was 'Marooned in Realtime', by Vernor Vinge; this book explores the disappearance of humanity, apparently due to exponentiating technological development...
    Vinge is one of the originators of the concept of the Singularity, after which we cannot make any confident predictions.

    Olaf Stapledon's 'Starmaker' is always worth reading, for an exploration of the ideas of non-humanoid aliens and warfare between advanced civilisations on a galactic scale. Amazing because it was written in 1937.

    ---------------
    SF worldbuilding at
    www.orionsarm.com
     
  20. CounslerCoffee Registered Senior Member

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    "A Handmaid's Tale" by Margaret Atwood. Or "Parable of the Sower" by Octavia Butler. Or even "The Moon is a Harsh Mistress".
     
  21. Rappaccini Redoubtable Registered Senior Member

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    A very good one that was, though not so thought-provoking, I think.




    I have had a copy of Macroscope for one or two years now but haven't yet gotten around to reading it... 'cept for the first chapter or so. I think I will now, right after I finish off a few more DOOM III demons.
     
  22. spuriousmonkey Banned Banned

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    can't remember the title or the author, but a group of people was send into space to some place. Turns out it was all a setup. They were never going anywhere. they were send to help science. They were the brightest people of the whole bunch and during the long trip they were given old scientific problems to solve to cure boredom. It turns out that the problems were nto old at all, but new. They were send to put their minds to totally new problems and come up with solutions because they don't actually know that nobody came with a solution yet. And so they did, until they discovered that they could never make it until their destiny. But their minds have become so sophisticated that they create the possibilty to come back. There were lots of children running around at one point.

    I think...if I remember correctly,
     
  23. invert_nexus Ze do caixao Valued Senior Member

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    Perhaps you didn't read deeply enough. It's all about social dynamics and deep human issues. Herbert should have been a philosopher.

    Of course, I am referring to the series as a whole and not just the first book in particular. It really began to come into it's own in the last three books in the series.

    Unbelievable to me that someone could say that they weren't thought-provoking. That concept is boggling my mind and provoking thoughts of its own.

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    Spurious,

    Shame you don't remember. That sounds like a good book.
     

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